This invention relates to a process for the of a flavouring agent having a meat-like taste, in which a paste-like mixture containing at least one source of free amino acids and additives comprising at least one reducing sugar is reacted by heating.
In the production of flavouring agents intended to taste like cooked or roasted meat, where a source of free amino acid, such as a protein hydrolyzate, is reacted with a reducing sugar, it has hitherto been customary to select and prepare the most suitable starting materials for obtaining flavours characteristic of various types of meat without any aftertaste. The reaction itself, known as the Maillard reaction, is generally carried out by heating a liquid or paste-like mixture of the appropriate ingredients to a temperature approaching the boiling temperature of water or of the mixture for a period of time ranging from several tens of minutes to several hours in standard reactors, such as a double-jacketed, stirred tank reactor. The liquid or paste-like reaction product is then generally dried under mild conditions, i.e. reduced pressure and moderate temperature, so that the reaction is unable to continue for hours. This conventional process is carried out in relatively large installations over relatively long periods of time.